After months of being touted as the “choice of the Democratic Party establishment” for Ohio’s Democrat gubernatorial primary, a new poll shows that Washington D.C. Bureaucrat Richard Cordray is still failing to catch fire with his party’s voters. The survey has Cordray tied with former Congressman Dennis Kucinich at 21 percent. Both candidates trail the leading Republican contender in the general election by solid margins.

Despite Cordray being widely acknowledged as the Democrat establishment choice, with some candidates even accusing the state Democrat Party of “rigging” the election in his favor, the party’s voters clearly aren’t sold on his candidacy. With just a little more than a month to go until Democrats choose their nominee, Cordray’s struggling campaign finds itself in a bitter primary fight against an energized challenger.

Click here to read original.

The Hill

By Congressman Bill Johnson (OH-6)

President Trump recognized the opioid crisis ravaging our nation before he was elected, and as a member of his Presidential Task Force on Opioids, I’ve witnessed firsthand his dedication to this important issue. I certainly agreed with the president’s decision late last year to declare the opioid epidemic a national emergency. We must call it what it is – burying our heads in the sand and wishing it would go away isn’t the answer.

The president’s bold vision very clearly lays out a plan to: reduce opioid demand and prevent over-prescription; increase research and development to find alternative non-opioid treatments; and, get tough on those who illegally bring in and distribute these deadly drugs. The opioid epidemic can be traced, in part, to misguided medical responses to pain management and an initial misunderstanding by the medical community of the addictive potential of opioids. While the increased focus on overprescribing and diversion of prescription pain medications, including from this administration, has begun to increase awareness, there is much more work to be done.

The president’s call for an evidence-based, public awareness campaign is an important component of this plan. Communicating clearly with the American people about the gravity of the issue and showing the seriousness with which this administration is taking this crisis is critical. I also believe that the medical education community can, and should, play a vital role in this effort by ensuring that tomorrow’s health care professionals are fully equipped to recognize and treat addiction and to responsibly manage pain.  

An effective plan must also address the need to help those struggling with addiction, including those who are in the criminal justice system because of a substance abuse issue. Without long-term treatment, recidivism among the addicted is high, because while they may become drug-free while incarcerated, the lack of support and continued treatment after their release leaves them especially vulnerable to relapse. By increasing support for drug courts, which can offer evidence-based treatment alternatives to prison, and providing connections to community treatment services and residential reentry centers after release from prison, we can offer help and hope to people whose only crime was to fall victim to the disease of addiction.

I’m also encouraged by the recent announcement that the Department of Labor will provide $21 million in grants to increase workforce training opportunities for those impacted by the opioid epidemic. Getting people back into the workforce is vital to ensure a sustainable recovery for individuals, families, and communities.

The president also called for on-demand, evidence-based addiction treatment for military service members, veterans and their families eligible for care through the Defense Department and the Department of Veterans Affairs. This administration has made veterans a priority, and I’m heartened to see this service included in the president’s plan.

Of course, cutting off the flow of illegal drugs coming across our borders into our communities is a must. Whatever one thinks of President Trump’s immigration policies, we can all agree on the need to stop these drugs from entering the country. This means tougher border security is necessary to cut off the supply. It also requires strengthening criminal penalties for major traffickers.

Eastern and Southeastern Ohio have been hit particularly hard by the opioid crisis. There isn’t a single day that goes by that I do not hear or read another heartbreaking story. I’ve said many times before that this is not a problem we as a country are going to be able to arrest, incarcerate, spend, or legislate our way out of – we all must work together, as Americans. I’ve visited and met with countless volunteers and others dedicated to turning the tide locally. They recognize, as do I, that addiction does not discriminate by age, race, social class, economic status or political affiliation.

Combatting this epidemic is also a bipartisan issue – a rarity in Washington these days. I’ve worked with many Republicans and Democrats who are just as concerned as I am, and are seeing and hearing similarly tragic stories. The resolve is there. Now, the president, his Cabinet, and his team are stepping up and saying loud and clear what so many of us across the country are saying: Enough is enough, and it’s time to extinguish this scourge of opioid addiction from our communities.

Bill Johnson represents Ohio’s 6th District and is a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee.

Sherrod Brown and Ohio Democrats have refused to denounce Hillary Clinton’s absurd statements last week, which demeaned Ohio voters and reminded us exactly “what happened” in the 2016 election.

Will Ohio Democrats break their silence, or should Ohio voters assume that they agree with Hillary? 

Last week Hillary Clinton asserted that people who live in the middle of the country (Ohioans) were attracted to a “backwards” campaign, and implied their votes were motivated by racism and sexism:

“If you look at the map of the United States there’s all that red in the middle where Trump won. I win the coasts, I win you know Illinois and Minnesota places like that, but what the map doesn’t show you is that I won the places that represent two-thirds of America’s gross domestic product. So I won the places that are optimistic, diverse, dynamic, moving forward, and his whole campaign ‘Make America Great Again’ was looking backwards.”

“You know, you didn’t like black people getting rights, you don’t like women, you know, getting jobs, you don’t want it, you know, see that Indian Americans succeeding more than you are. Whatever your problem is I’m gonna solve it.”

Click Here To Watch

Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) Endorsed Clinton For President In 2015.

“Hillary Clinton picked up an endorsement Tuesday from a prominent Senate liberal, Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown, giving her the backing of top elected Democrats in each of the three biggest general election swing states.” (Gabriel Debenedetti, “Sherrod Brown Endorses Hillary Clinton,” Politico , 10/27/15)

Brown Said That He Trusts Clinton To “Fight For Children And Families,” “Fight For Women’s Health,” And “Fight For Civil Rights.” 

“I trust Secretary Clinton to fight for children and families,” the Democratic Ohio senator said Monday. “I trust Secretary Clinton to fight for women’s health, I trust Secretary Clinton, as her speech today certainly emphasized at the NAACP, to fight for civil rights.” (Bianca Padró Ocasoo, “Sherrod Brown: ‘I Trust’ Hillary Clinton,” Politico , 7/18/18)

TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) – Three people from the Houston area were charged in federal court after authorities arrested them in Toledo with what is believed to be more than three pounds of fentanyl.

Anthony Robinson, 32, Barbera Wilson, 21, and Darrius Lewis, 29, were each charged with conspiracy possess with intent to distribute controlled substances.

On Tuesday night, Robinson and Wilson traveled from a Red Roof Inn to the United States Post Office on Bancroft in Toledo, where Robinson and Wilson attempted to mail one kilogram of suspected fentanyl. The drugs were wrapped in multiple layers of heat-sealed plastic bags and encased in coffee grounds. The drugs field tested positive for fentanyl, according to an affidavit filed in federal court.

Agents then obtained search warrants for the Red Roof Inn rooms where the defendants were staying. All three were arrested at the motel and a search of their rooms discovered an additional half-kilogram of suspected fentanyl, as well as approximately $8,018 in cash, according to the affidavit.

“The fentanyl seized last night is enough to kill everyone in Toledo several times over,” said U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman. “This is a great example of law enforcement working together to make our community safer.”

“Fentanyl is a dangerous synthetic opioid with deadly consequences for users and those in law enforcement,” said Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge Steve Francis. “This significant seizure clearly demonstrates HSI’s resolve to combatting the ongoing epidemic affecting Ohio, which we redoubled last week by pledging increased resources in the state.”

“Individuals from out of state who think they can come into Ohio to traffic drugs undetected should know that we have task forces like this one across the state whose mission is to find you, seize your drugs, and stop you from profiting off of Ohioans who are suffering from addiction,” said Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine. “It took this task force less than a day and a half to identify these suspects and intercept the package of deadly fentanyl before it left the post office. I commend task force members for their swift work.”

“This arrest should show that the Toledo Police Department, with our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners will continue to work diligently and aggressively to keep Toledo’s streets free from this poison,” said Toledo Police Chief George Kral. “I commend those dedicated investigators who were involved in this large seizure and arrests. God only knows how many lives have been saved, and subsidiary crimes avoided, because of these dedicated men and women. I sincerely hope anyone considering committing illegal activity in Toledo will reconsider doing so.”

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alissa M. Sterling following an investigation by the the Toledo Bulk Cash Smuggling Task Force, which consists of representatives of the Toledo Police Department, U.S. Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Border Patrol, the Lucas County Prosecutor’s Office, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio.

If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violations. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and, in most cases, it will be less than the maximum.

Click here to read online.

On fixing Dodd-Frank, the House shouldn’t be a potted plant.
The Wall Street Journal – The Editorial Board 

After passing a bipartisan banking bill 67-31 that would remedy some of the Dodd-Frank Act’s flaws, many Senators want to call it a wrap. But Congress is a bicameral legislature, and the House deserves an opportunity to improve on the Senate’s work.

The crux of Banking Chairman Mike Crapo’s bill would raise the asset threshold for banks that must comply with “enhanced prudential standards”—jargon for stringent stress tests and liquidity requirements—to $250 billion from $50 billion. The bill also eases myriad regulatory requirements on small banks.

Elizabeth Warren has berated her Democratic colleagues for shining shoes on Wall Street, but the biggest banks for the most part wouldn’t benefit from this reprieve. The regional and community banks that would be helped don’t present a systemic risk. Most maintain much bigger capital cushions than the global giants since they don’t have a federal backstop.

Yet small banks have had to divert human and financial capital to regulatory compliance. The Bank of Commerce in Idaho Falls had to stop offering consumer mortgages due to the cost of hiring new compliance staff. When regional banks get squeezed, the giants sweep up more business, which concentrates more risk in the banking system.

As Democrat Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota put it, “Dodd-Frank was supposed to have stopped too big to fail, but the net result has been too small to succeed. The big banks have gotten bigger since the passage of Dodd-Frank, and the small banks have disappeared.”

The 16 Democrats who voted for the bill’s common-sense reforms are getting flogged by Ms. Warren and ranking Banking Committee Democrat Sherrod Brown, who is aggrieved that he was excluded from negotiations. He excluded himself. Senate Republicans now worry these Democrats will get cold feet if they have to vote again, so they want the House to pass the bill straight up.

But the impetus for Dodd-Frank reform originated in the House, and Members there deserve to shape the final product. Last year the House passed the Choice Act that traded fewer regulatory rules for higher capital standards. While that was too bold for most Senate Democrats, Finance Chairman Jeb Hensarling has broken the bill into dozens of bite-size pieces that have passed with huge majorities.

Consider the Halos Act, which the House passed by a 344-73 vote and would allow startups to informally pitch angel investors at “demo days” without violating securities laws. Another bill (426-0) would exempt merger and acquisition brokers involved in the sale of small, private firms from federal registration.

The Financial Institution Living Will Improvement Act (414-0) would require the Federal Reserve and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to disclose publicly how they assess “living wills.” Democrats also backed a bill (395-2) to prevent regulators from choking off politically disfavored businesses from the banking system as the Obama Administration did with payday lenders and gun dealers.

The Senate incorporated some House bills but left out these and two dozen others with broad bipartisan backing. House Republicans should be able to attach several of these without endangering Democratic support in the Senate.

They also ought to strike a Senate provision that gives custody banks, which safeguard assets for pension funds and institutional investors, special treatment under the Federal Reserve’s capital standards. This would let them increase their leverage. Citibank and J.P. Morgan may also qualify for the exception since they provide custodial services, which could result in a slow erosion of the banking system’s capital firewall. Big banks need more capital to withstand a major financial panic.

Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has given Democrats latitude to vote for the Senate bill because they want a bipartisan achievement to run on. But House Republicans also need accomplishments to trumpet beyond tax reform. Senate Republicans should be as willing to accommodate their GOP colleagues as they are Democrats.

Click here to read online.